Definition – Mrs G's Masters Musings

Once again, I find myself at the beginning of another semester of study, but this one has a different feel about it for a few reasons. Firstly, this is an elective unit to I feel that I have a more focused interest in this topic. Secondly, this is my final unit of study and thirdly, I am also undertaking ETL512 (Professional practice and portfolio) concurrently with ETL523 (Digital Citizenship in Schools). What an exciting time!

I chose this elective because I feel that it is such a poignant topic in this world of non-stop information. I also chose to study this elective at this time because my school is currently undertaking a laptop rollout for years 7-11 and the school is going through the process of what the use of these devices looks like in classrooms and the expectations around their use.

What is digital citizenship and why is it important?

To me, digital citizenship is participating online in a responsible and positive manner. So, what does that look like? According to Council of Europe (2023), “digital citizens can be described as individuals able to use digital tools to create, consume, communicate and engage positively and responsibly with others”. I prefer this definition when compared with the one provided by the NSW Department of Education (n.d.) which states that “a digital citizen is a person with the skills and knowledge to effectively use digital technologies to participate in society, communicate with others and create and consume digital content”. I prefer the first definition because of the inclusion of the word ‘positively’. Ribble (2015) also agrees that the term ‘positive’ is an important aspect of digital citizenship so that everyone can engage in the digital world.

Digital citizenship is important in the fast-paced world of information overload. Being discerning about what we are consuming and engaging with online is so important. Having skills to determine the trash from the treasure is invaluable to our ability to engage with and function in society.

Is digital citizenship different to digital literacy?

This seems to be a bit of a grey area, but according to Pangrazio and Sefton-Greene (2021), digital literacy is the foundation of digital citizenship. We must be competent in the literacies before we can fully participate. Digital literacy is broken down into separate skills that each need to be mastered in order to be competent in the online world. These skills include managing online safety, locating and evaluating information and problem solving (ACARA, 2022).

I am looking forward to learning more about digital citizenship and its role in the school environment.

References

Australian Curriculum And Reporting Authority (ACARA). (2022). Digital literacy. The Australian Curriculum. https://v9.australiancurriculum.edu.au/teacher-resources/understand-this-general-capability/digital-literacy

Council of Europe. (2023). Digital citizenship. Digital Citizenship in Education https://www.coe.int/en/web/digital-citizenship-education/digital-citizenship

NSW Department of Education (n.d.). About digital citizenship. Digital Citizenship. https://www.digitalcitizenship.nsw.edu.au/about

Pangrazio, L. and Sefton-Green, J. (2021). Digital Rights, Digital Citizenship and Digital Literacy: What’s the Difference?. Journal of New Approaches in Educational Research 10(1), p.15-27.

Ribble, M. (2015). Digital citizenship in schools (3rd ed.) International Society for Technology in Education.

This week has been a world of new vocabulary relating to research. To wrap me head around some relevant vocabulary, I decided to create my own definitions.

Research

To begin the discussion around research it is important to first define what the word research means. There are so many definitions out there, but my understanding is that research is the systematic study of a phenomenon. It relies on the collection and analysis of data and using this information to create or discover new knowledge. It can also be the analysis of existing knowledge that creates new understandings. Once this process has been completed, the dissemination of this research is also an important step.

Paradigm

The paradigm is the framework for how the researcher views the world. This view will in turn influence how the research is conducted. The three main paradigms are positivist, post-positivist and interpretivist, each with their own distinct views.

Positivist	The positivist paradigm is very black and white in its views. It relies on solving problems mathematically and that truth is out there, but just needs to be discovered. This truth can be discovered in its whole through quantitative methods such as experiments.
Post-positivist	The post-positivist paradigm leads on from the positivist approach, however there are limits to what can be discovered. This paradigm often focuses on the null-hypothesis and falsifying findings. Eg: One black swan disproves the theory that all swans are white. Post-positivists often use mixed-methods and triangulate the findings.
Interpretivist	Interpretivists focus on reality being constructed through human experience. Truth can be discovered through understanding the complexity of relationships and this is achieved through qualitative methods such as interviews and focus groups.

Methodology

Research methodology is the framework for how a researcher intends to complete their research. It usually falls into the categories of qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods. The methods then come below this. A qualitative method could be ethnography where data is gathered through interviews. A quantitative method could be an experiment where data is gathered through statistical modelling.

There is still a long way to go in my understanding of research theory, but I am enjoying the journey.

Mrs G's Masters Musings

Tag: Definition

Digital Citizenship – Initial thoughts

Definitions for research